THE DEATH OF THE BELIEVER Job 5:26-27

"Thou shalt come to thy grave IN A FULL AGE, like as a shock of corn COMETH IN IN HIS SEASON. Lo this, we have searched it, so it is; hear it, and know thou it FOR THY GOOD" (Job 5:26-27).

1. The death of the believer is INEVITABLE. "thou SHALT come to thy grave." Because of sin, death has passed upon all. All men must die and be buried, believers and unbelievers.

2. The death of the believer is ACCEPTABLE. "Thou shall COME to thy grave." this reveals a willingness to die. We choose to be absent from this body and present with the Lord. Our Lord said to the unbelievers, "This night thy soul shall be REQUIRED of thee" (demanded of thee). Not so the elect! We are not forced to leave this earth and be with Christ; we willingly come to Him in death as we came to Him in faith.

3. The death of the believer is TIMELY. "Thou shalt come to thy grave IN A FULL AGE;" that is, in the fullness of the Lord's time! Our time on this earth is determined by our Lord. "Our bounds are set, the number of our days are with Thee." No believer dies before or beyond the Lord's appointed age, which is, regardless of the length of it, OUR FULL AGE.

4. The death of the believer is WITH VICTORY AND FULLNESS OF REDEMPTION, "Like a shock of corn cometh in IN HIS SEASON." If corn is harvested before it is ripe, it would not be fit for use; and if it is left in the fields too long, it will come to nothing. Our salvation is complete in Christ. "He hath made us sufficient and ripe for glory." So when the Lord's purpose for us (on this earth and in his church) is served, the believer is ripe and ready to be plucked from this field and taken to His table for the marriage feast.

5. The death of the believer is FOR HIS GOOD. Eliphaz says, "I have searched and studied these things and THEY ARE TRUE; I exhort you to HEAR IT and know it" (take it to heart as belonging to you) and know that all that our Lord brings to pass is for our good, who love Him and are called according to His purpose.